


a heart’s a heavy burden

by crypticock



Category: One Piece
Genre: Hurt/Comfort, M/M, Panic Attacks
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-02-19
Updated: 2019-02-19
Packaged: 2019-10-31 14:15:24
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 864
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17851097
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/crypticock/pseuds/crypticock
Summary: Sanji has a unique way of seeking comfort.





	a heart’s a heavy burden

There was something about the act that always drew his attention, splitting the sea of a crowd to draw him into his airspace with an air of nonchalance that quite frankly pissed him off.

He wasn’t a smoker, had no desire to be, and yet somehow couldn’t help but stare as he watched him streamline the smoker into his lungs with a deep breath. The instant gratification of nicotine riveting through his system and just as quickly being smoothed over into the easy facade he was used to.

“Hey” 

Sanji turned to look at him with an unreadable expression followed by a slow smile.

“Do I look normal to you?”

Zoro processed the words through his head, filtering through various different interpretations of whatever the fuck that meant.

“Are you sure you’re not smoking crack, shit cook?”

He settled with a response as he squinted at the blonde literally having zero fuckin clue what he was on about. He assumes that maybe that was the right answer as Sanji let’s out a small laugh. A tight, hollow laugh. Yeah, maybe that was the wrong answer, he’s not sure though.

“So you can’t tell, huh? That i’m missing something?”

To be honest, he was doing his head in more than he usually did but it didn’t feel like the right atmosphere to start a fight so he let Sanji lead him along on this cryptic journey.

“You look like your regular shitty self, if that’s what you mean.”

He studied his features as the lips tightly wrapped around his cigarette shifted into a strained smile.

“I’m glad.”

__________

 

“Zoro, can you do me a favour?”

He opened his eye to glare up at the blonde towering over his barely conscious body.

“Not if you wake me up from my nap, I can’t”

“Shut up, you shitty piece of moss”

His words lacked the usual bite and aggression which made something inside of Zoro pang. That was probably his heart but he wouldn’t admit that so it was definitely his brain sending out signals and a big flashing neon sign of concern.

“What is it?”

Sanji kind of fiddled on the spot for a second, like he was contemplating something that he both needed and hated but most of all did not at all fucking understand.

“Don’t move and don’t say anything, not a fucking word”

“Wh-“

“Not a fucking word!”

A look of panic had began leaking through his heated exterior and for a moment Zoro saw something inside of him that he didn’t recognise. Fear? Loathing? Within the depths of his heart he could feel something cold and barely beating. Handcrafted glass reaching it’s pressure point, still warm and young, fast tracked towards breakage.

“Can you close your eyes as well?”

Zoro nodded in response, despite not being able to see anything he could feel the vulnerability emanating off of his skin and reverberating through the air.

He heard the rustle of fabric before feeling a weight on his lap as arms began to encase around his neck. Sanji’s chest pressed up against his own, his heart reaching out and yearning the sooth the rapid heartbeat in front of him.

Zoro brought his arms up off the ground to rest firmly on his waist as he hugged him closer towards him, Sanji’s arms tightening in return. Sanji’s heartbeat began to fall into a rhythm of panicked beating followed by hiccuped moments of calm. He felt the uneven breathes against his neck and the tensing of his muscles as Sanji slipped in and out of panic, the silence beating down on Zoro as he tried the best he could to reassure him of his love without making a sound.

Comforting circles on his lower back, the other hand gently stroking strands of his light hair through his fingertips. Despite the wetness of tears and the muffled cries against his neck, no matter what he wouldn’t say a word. No “are you okay” or “what’s wrong” everything that needed to be said had to be transferred through his fingertips and massaged into his soft skin. 

He would engrave his love into the bindings of his heart and pump it along so it kept beating. He would cradle and nurture it til it reached a calm, and dance along it’s ridges when it was begging to stop. The harder it begged, the firmer he danced, racing forward to meet it and it thrum once more with that beautiful beat. He would never allow it to shrink so small and wither in on itself in isolation, no matter how much it wanted to.

Zoro felt Sanji shift in his and unwrap himself from his torso, allowing an arm to reach up and cup his cheek.

“You can open your eyes now. You can speak too.”

Zoro opened his eyes and leaned into the touch before pressing a light kiss against his palm. Sanji let out a soft smile before gently placing a chaste kiss to his forehead and then resting his own against it.

“I love you.”

Zoro let out his own smile in return before catching Sanji’s own lips and grinning wider into the kiss.

“I know.”

**Author's Note:**

> sorry if sanji’s behaviour seems a bit strange or out of character but let me give some background. i have a few disabilities that inhibit my ability to communicate certain feelings so for example when i’m feeling depressed i’m physically unable to talk about it because i first of all don’t understand the feelings and i can’t translate it into words or something tangible. so when someone asks me to explain it it’s an instantaneous overload of information for me and my brain short circuits and i freak out. so for me i prefer to sit and wait it out in silence until the feeling goes away althoug i would often think about sitting in someone’s embrace to help ward the feeling away. i know communication is extremely important for a relationship but for things like depression for me personally it makes things a lot worse to talk about it and you may ask how do i deal with these feelings if they don’t cole out? i don’t know i’m still trying to find something that works ajsjsjsjs anyways just some background information in case u were curious.


End file.
